In this chapter we have some account of the
genealogies, I. Of Issachar, ver.
1-5. II. Of Benjamin, ver. 6-12. III. Of Naphtali, ver. 13. IV. Of Manasseh, ver. 14-19. V. Of Ephraim,
ver. 20-29. VI. Of
Asher, ver. 30-40. Here
is no account either of Zebulun or Dan. Why they only should be
omitted we can assign no reason; only it is the disgrace of the
tribe of Dan that idolatry began in that colony of the Danites
which fixed in Laish, and called Dan, and there one of the golden
calves was set up by Jeroboam. Dan is omitted, Rev. vii.

Genealogies. (b. c. 1689.)

1 Now the sons of Issachar were, Tola,
and Puah, Jashub, and Shimron, four. 2 And the sons of Tola;
Uzzi, and Rephaiah, and Jeriel, and Jahmai, and Jibsam, and
Shemuel, heads of their father's house, to wit, of Tola:
they were valiant men of might in their generations; whose
number was in the days of David two and twenty thousand and
six hundred. 3 And the sons of Uzzi; Izrahiah: and the sons
of Izrahiah; Michael, and Obadiah, and Joel, Ishiah, five: all of
them chief men. 4 And with them, by their generations, after
the house of their fathers, were bands of soldiers for war,
six and thirty thousand men: for they had many wives and
sons. 5 And their brethren among all the families of
Issachar were valiant men of might, reckoned in all by their
genealogies fourscore and seven thousand. 6 The sons
of Benjamin; Bela, and Becher, and Jediael, three. 7 And the
sons of Bela; Ezbon, and Uzzi, and Uzziel, and Jerimoth, and Iri,
five; heads of the house of their fathers, mighty men of
valour; and were reckoned by their genealogies twenty and two
thousand and thirty and four. 8 And the sons of Becher;
Zemira, and Joash, and Eliezer, and Elioenai, and Omri, and
Jerimoth, and Abiah, and Anathoth, and Alameth. All these
are the sons of Becher. 9 And the number of them,
after their genealogy by their generations, heads of the house of
their fathers, mighty men of valour, was twenty thousand and
two hundred. 10 The sons also of Jediael; Bilhan: and the
sons of Bilhan; Jeush, and Benjamin, and Ehud, and Chenaanah, and
Zethan, and Tharshish, and Ahishahar. 11 All these the sons
of Jediael, by the heads of their fathers, mighty men of valour,
were seventeen thousand and two hundred soldiers, fit
to go out for war and battle. 12 Shuppim also, and
Huppim, the children of Ir, and Hushim, the sons of Aher.
13 The sons of Naphtali; Jahziel, and Guni, and Jezer, and
Shallum, the sons of Bilhah. 14 The sons of Manasseh;
Ashriel, whom she bare: (but his concubine the Aramitess
bare Machir the father of Gilead: 15 And Machir took to wife
the sister of Huppim and Shuppim, whose sister's name
was Maachah;) and the name of the second was
Zelophehad: and Zelophehad had daughters. 16 And Maachah the
wife of Machir bare a son, and she called his name Peresh; and the
name of his brother was Sheresh; and his sons were
Ulam and Rakem. 17 And the sons of Ulam; Bedan. These
were the sons of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of
Manasseh. 18 And his sister Hammoleketh bare Ishod, and
Abiezer, and Mahalah. 19 And the sons of Shemida were,
Ahian, and Shechem, and Likhi, and Aniam.

We have here a short view given us,

I. Of the tribe of Issachar, whom Jacob had
compared to a strong ass, couching between two burdens
(Gen. xlix. 14), an
industrious tribe, that minded their country business very closely
and rejoiced in their tents, Deut. xxxiii. 18. And here it appears, 1.
That they were a numerous tribe; for they had many wives. So
fruitful their country was that they saw no danger of over-stocking
the pasture, and so ingenious the people were that they could find
work for all hands. Let no people complain of their numbers,
provided they suffer none to be idle. 2. That they were a valiant
tribe, men of might (v.
2, 5), chief men, v. 3. Those that were inured to labour
and business were of all men the fittest to serve their country
when there was occasion, The number of the respective families, as
taken in the days of David, is here set down, amounting in the
whole to above 145,000 men fit for war. The account, some think,
was taken when Joab numbered the people, 2 Sam. xxiv. But I rather think it refers
to some other computation that was made, perhaps among themselves,
because it is said (1 Chron. xxvii.
24) that that account was not inserted in the chronicles
of king David, it having offended God.

II. Of the tribe of Benjamin. Some account
is here given of this tribe, but much larger in the next chapter.
The militia of this tribe scarcely reached to 60,000; but they are
said to be mighty men of valour, v. 7, 9, 11. Benjamin shall
ravin as a wolf, Gen. xlix.
27. It was the honour of this tribe that it produced
Saul the first king, and more its honour that it adhered to the
rightful kings of the house of David when the other tribes
revolted. Here is mention (v.
12) of Hushim the sons of Aher. The sons of Dan are said
to be Hushim (Gen. xlvi.
23), and therefore some read Aher appellatively,
Hushim—the sons of another (that is, another of
Jacob's sons) or the sons of a stranger, which Israelites should
not be, but such the Danites were when they set up Micah's graven
and molten image among them.

III. Of the tribe of Naphtali, v. 13. The first fathers only
of that tribe are named, the very same that we shall find,
Gen. xlvi. 24, only that
Shillem there is Shallum here. None of their
descendents are named, perhaps because their genealogies were
lost.

IV. Of the tribe of Manasseh, that part of
it which was seated within Jordan; for of the other part we had
some account before, ch. v.
23, &c. Of this tribe observe, 1. That one of them
married an Aramitess, that is, a Syrian, v. 14. This was during their bondage
in Egypt, so early did they begin to mingle with the nations. 2.
That, though the father married a Syrian, Machir, the son of that
marriage, perhaps seeing the inconvenience of it in his father's
house, took to wife a daughter of Benjamin, v. 15. It is good for the children to
take warning by their father's mistakes and not stumble at the same
stone. 3. Here is mention of Bedan (v. 17), who perhaps is the same with
that Bedan who is mentioned as one of Israel's deliverers,
1 Sam. xii. 11. Jair
perhaps, who was of Manasseh (Judg. x.
3), was the man.

Genealogies. (b. c. 1630.)

20 And the sons of Ephraim; Shuthelah, and Bered
his son, and Tahath his son, and Eladah his son, and Tahath his
son, 21 And Zabad his son, and Shuthelah his son, and Ezer,
and Elead, whom the men of Gath that were born in
that land slew, because they came down to take away their
cattle. 22 And Ephraim their father mourned many days, and
his brethren came to comfort him. 23 And when he went in to
his wife, she conceived, and bare a son, and he called his name
Beriah, because it went evil with his house. 24 (And his
daughter was Sherah, who built Beth-horon the nether, and
the upper, and Uzzen-sherah.) 25 And Rephah was his
son, also Resheph, and Telah his son, and Tahan his son, 26
Laadan his son, Ammihud his son, Elishama his son, 27 Non
his son, Jehoshua his son. 28 And their possessions and
habitations were, Bethel and the towns thereof, and eastward
Naaran, and westward Gezer, with the towns thereof; Shechem also
and the towns thereof, unto Gaza and the towns thereof: 29
And by the borders of the children of Manasseh, Beth-shean and her
towns, Taanach and her towns, Megiddo and her towns, Dor and her
towns. In these dwelt the children of Joseph the son of Israel.
30 The sons of Asher; Imnah, and Isuah, and Ishuai, and
Beriah, and Serah their sister. 31 And the sons of Beriah;
Heber, and Malchiel, who is the father of Birzavith.
32 And Heber begat Japhlet, and Shomer, and Hotham, and Shua their
sister. 33 And the sons of Japhlet; Pasach, and Bimhal, and
Ashvath. These are the children of Japhlet. 34 And
the sons of Shamer; Ahi, and Rohgah, Jehubbah, and Aram. 35
And the sons of his brother Helem; Zophah, and Imna, and Shelesh,
and Amal. 36 The sons of Zophah; Suah, and Harnepher, and
Shual, and Beri, and Imrah, 37 Bezer, and Hod, and Shamma,
and Shilshah, and Ithran, and Beera. 38 And the sons of
Jether; Jephunneh, and Pispah, and Ara. 39 And the sons of
Ulla; Arah, and Haniel, and Rezia. 40 All these were
the children of Asher, heads of their father's house, choice
and mighty men of valour, chief of the princes. And the
number throughout the genealogy of them that were apt to the war
and to battle was twenty and six thousand men.

We have here an account,

I. Of the tribe of Ephraim. Great things we
read of that tribe when it came to maturity. Here we have an
account of the disasters of its infancy, while it was in Egypt as
it should seem; for Ephraim himself was alive when those things
were done, which yet is hard to imagine if it were, as is here
computed, seven generations off. Therefore I am apt to think that
either it was another Ephraim or that those who were slain were the
immediate sons of that Ephraim that was the son of Joseph. In this
passage, which is related here only, we have, 1. The great breach
that was made upon the family of Ephraim. The men of Gath,
Philistines, giants, slew many of the sons of that family,
because they came down to take away their cattle, v. 21. It is uncertain who
were the aggressors here, and you can find
more about that here on
st-takla.org on other commentaries and
dictionary entries. Some make the men of Gath the aggressors,
men born in the land of Egypt, but now resident in Gath,
supposing that they came down into the land of Goshen, to drive
away the Ephraimites' cattle, and slew the owners, because they
stood up in the defence of them. Many a man's life has been exposed
and betrayed by his wealth; so far is it from being a strong city.
Others think that the Ephraimites made a descent upon the men of
Gath to plunder them, presuming that the time had come when they
should be put in possession of Canaan; but they paid dearly for
their rashness and precipitation. Those that will not wait God's
time cannot expect God's blessing. I rather think that the men of
Gath came down upon the Ephraimites, because the Israelites in
Egypt were shepherds, not soldiers, abounded in cattle of their
own, and therefore were not likely to venture their lives for their
neighbours' cattle: and the words may be read, The men of Gath
slew them, for they came down to take away their cattle. Zabad
the son of Ephraim, and Shuthelah, and Ezer, and Elead (his
grandchildren), were, as Dr. Lightfoot thinks, the men that were
slain. Jacob had foretold that the seed of Ephraim should become a
multitude of nations (Gen.
xlviii. 19), and yet that plant is thus nipped in the
bud. God's providences often seem to contradict his promises; but,
when they do so, they really magnify the promise, and make the
performance of it, notwithstanding, so much more illustrious. The
Ephraimites were the posterity of Joseph, and yet his power could
not protect them, though some think he was yet living. The sword
devours one as well as another. 2. The great grief which oppressed
the father of the family hereupon: Ephraim mourned many
days. Nothing brings the aged to the grave with more sorrow
than their following the young that descend from them to the grave
first, especially if in blood. It is often the burden of those that
live to be old that they see those go before them of whom they
said, These same shall comfort us. It was a brotherly
friendly office which his brethren did, when they came to
comfort him under this great affliction, to express their
sympathy with him and concern for him, and to suggest that to him
which would support and quiet him under this sad providence.
Probably they reminded him of the promise of increase which Jacob
had blessed him when he laid his right hand upon his head. Although
his house was not so with God as he hoped, but a house of mourning,
a shattered family, yet that promise was sure, 2 Sam. xxiii. 5. 3. The repair of this
breach, in some measure, by addition of another son to his family
in his old age (v.
23), like Seth, another seed instead of that of Abel
whom Cain slew, Gen. iv.
25. When God thus restores comfort to his mourners,
makes glad according to the days wherein he afflicted,
setting the mercies over against the crosses, we ought therein to
take notice of the kindness and tenderness of divine Providence; it
is as if it repented God concerning his servants, Ps. xc. 13, 15. Yet joy that a man
was born into his family could not make him forget his grief; for
he gives a melancholy name to his son, Beriah—in trouble,
for he was born when the family was in mourning, when it went
evil with his house. It is good to have in remembrance the
affliction and the misery, the wormwood and the gall, that our
souls may be humbled within us, Lam. iii. 19, 20. What name more proper for
man that is born of a woman than Beriah, because born
into a troublesome world? It is added, as a further honour to the
house of Ephraim, (1.) That a daughter of that tribe, Sherah
by name, at the time of Israel's setting in Canaan, built some
cities, either at her own charge or by her own care; one of them
bore her name, Uzzen-sherah, v. 24. A virtuous woman may be as
great an honour and blessing to a family as a mighty man. (2.) That
a son of that tribe was employed in the conquest of Canaan,
Joshua the son of Nun, v. 27. In this also the breach made on
Ephraim's family was further repaired; and perhaps the resentment
of this injury formerly done by the Canaanites to the Ephraimites
might make him more vigorous in the war.

II. Of the tribe of Asher. Some men of note
of that tribe are here named. Their militia was not numerous in
comparison with some other tribes, only 26,000 men in all; but
their princes were choice and mighty men of valour, chief of the
princes (v. 40),
and perhaps it was their wisdom that they coveted not to make their
trained bands numerous, but rather to have a few, and those apt to
the war and serviceable men.